The Story Behind Billy Gibbons' Legendary 1959 Les Paul

PJ Pat excitedly shares the discovery of a vintage Guitar Aficionado magazine featuring ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons. Delving into an article, they explore the fascinating tale of how Gibbons acquired his iconic 1959 Les Paul, affectionately known as Pearly Gates. The guitar, obtained from a Texas rancher for just $250, has a storied history and unique features that make it irreplaceable. PJ Pat emphasizes the emotional and nostalgic value of such instruments, inviting viewers to relate through their own cherished possessions, whether musical or otherwise.

00:00 Uncovering a Vintage Gem
00:26 The Magic of Billy Gibbons and ZZ Top
01:09 The Legendary 1959 Les Paul
01:49 The Fascinating Story of Pearly Gates
02:52 The Guitar's Unique Journey
06:19 The Priceless Value of Pearly Gates
07:19 Reflecting on the Magic of Music

Transcript

[00:00:00] All right. You'll never believe what I uncovered in my magazine collection. Check this out. It is a vintage, I don't even know what year this is, A long time ago. At least 10 years old, if not 15 guitar Aficionado edition, and has the one and only Billy Gibbons, one of my favorite guitar players. I love his style, I love his tone, and he sings as well.

[00:00:21] And he's just an all around freaking. Killer guitar player. And if you've seen him play with his band, the one and only ZZ Top from Texas they him and Dusty, the bass player they actually change up their instruments almost, I wanna say every second or third song. And when they change it, they match.

[00:00:44] There's a certain theme going on every time they change it and it matches. Let's say if, for example, Billy would be playing like a. Feathered pink, fuzzy feathered guitar. Guess what? Desi will be playing the exact same thing on bass as the exact same style guitar. So they have some weird, funky, wild guitars.

[00:01:02] But I really see Gibbons at least live, play a couple songs in a row where it's just like a plain Les Paul. Obviously he does, but there's an article in here where they talk about. The coveted 1959 Les Paul. So apparently he has one. And any guitarist that you know of would pretty much run over their loved one to get their hands on a 1959 Les Paul.

[00:01:29] And Gibbons obviously has one, and I think he has a story to tell on how he got it, which is pretty interesting. All right, you ready to dive into this article? Let's do this.

[00:01:49] Okay, the article is called Bedroom Fang, how Billy Gibbons found his 1959 Les Paul Purley Gates under a Rancher's Bed by Alan De Perma, photograph by John in, look at this. You can't really see it but up close and personal. There's all these unique little dings and scratches and poof. I am telling you, I don't even know.

[00:02:14] Want to guess what this thing is worth? Okay, here we go. You gotta have the right guns when you enter. The town of Tone says Billy Gibbons. Translation, if you're heading into a recording studio or onto a stage, it helps to have some really hot guitars with you. And there are a few hotter guns than sorry.

[00:02:36] And there are a few hotter guns in all Guitar Dam than Gibbons. 1959, Les Paul known to guitar fishing ados worldwide as Purley Gates. Yes, I have heard him talk about this iconic Purley Gates guitar before, for sure. Gibbons acquired the instrument in 1968 just as ZZ Top were getting underway. Pearl Gates has played a staring role on every one of the band's records from ZZ Tops first album in 1971.

[00:03:04] To this set of tunes, the little old band from Texas is currently recording with super producer Rick Rubin. Threads of fortunate karma, both cultural and personal. Crisscrossed the tail of how Billy acquired Pur.

[00:03:18] It was a seminal 1966 album, blues Breakers with Eric Clapton that set him on a quest to own a sunburst Les Paul, like the one Clapton is seen holding in the disc's rear sleeve photo. A dear friend of mine, Billy recalls a fellow musician, Mr. John Wilson, was playing in a band called The Magic Ring out of Houston.

[00:03:41] He told me there's a rancher outside of town who played in a country band. But has turned his attention toward wrangling cattle. Rumor has it that the guitar still resides under one of his beds in his ranch house. So Gibbons drove solo about an hour out of Houston and found the elusive rancher. The guy was big Billy recalls, he was like a John Wayne Guy.

[00:04:02] I had 250 bucks in my pocket and we pulled out that 59 burst. The deal went down. Can you imagine 250 bucks for a 59 less? Paul? That's worth a fortune these days, but man, that's crazy. Billy had freshly obtained a cash as a return on a favor, he loaned an aspiring actress, a 1939 Packard automobile that he collectively owned with some friends so that she could drive from Houston to Hollywood for a screen test.

[00:04:30] We didn't think the car would make it past El Paso, Billy says, but it brought her all the way to Hollywood and she got the part. We figured the car must have divine connection, so we named it Pearly Gate. S. Meanwhile, she called and said, should I send the car back or sell it? We said, sell it. She did. And my portion of the settlement arrived the very day I drove out to see the rancher.

[00:04:56] Coincidence? I think not. And so the they pearl gates with all its attendant magic was transferred to the guitar, which was in mint condition when Billy obtained it. It still had the original set of flat wound strings from the Gibson factory on it, Billy Marvel's plus an extra set of black diamond flat wounds in the case.

[00:05:17] I still got also in a case was a love note, which we also still have from a girlfriend of the original owner. She said, I like what you do. Meet me later. You might like what I do. Awesome. Over the years, the instrument has acquired a patina of scratches, scrapes, and dings, including ample belt buckle wear on the rear of the body. Oh yeah. Any kind of musicians that's gigging or touring definitely knows what that's about. I call that trash rash says, but one of the first signs of wear and tear on Purley was on the pick guard following in the footsteps of Clapton.

[00:05:57] Segovia, not sure that is, and others. Gibbons grew out the fingernails of his right hand. What I hadn't counted on was that the fingernail of the little finger started digging into the pit guard, leaving scratches. He says still Billy has kept purley a hundred percent stock. Even the frets are original.

[00:06:17] So cool. What might such an instrument be worth today there was a Japanese gen who offered $5 million us, Billy says. Which is an attractive offer. But then again, I've spent plenty of money putting together a collection of guitars, attempting to find something to replicate purely, and it just hasn't happened yet.

[00:06:36] That's what led to this closet full of hardwood that I have. And there you go. Short and sweet. And you can see there's a little closeup image of the guitar right there with the little scratches in between the the pickups. So cool. Isn't that just fascinating how a guitar can have such a unusual, unique sound that is not replicated in any other guitars.

[00:07:05] No matter how much more expensive a guitar could be, it can never replicate that one magical guitar. And it looks like Billy has his, with Pearl Gates. Just the fascinating stuff. Just amazing. There you go. Hopefully you don't have to be a guitar player to enjoy these type of stories.

[00:07:23] And I'm sure you could relate in some sense, whether it's a guitar, whether it's a car, or whether it's a special, fricking harmonica or banjo or whatever you do. I, I dunno, I dunno if you can relate that to soccer. I'm trying to find an analogy to soccer. I guess it wouldn't be a soccer ball or a basketball, but maybe it's like the feeling you get when you step onto a specific basketball court or an outdoor baseball field or something that just brings up, the ghost of, past players or I don't know what childhood memories, that makes it even more awesome of an experience being on there anyways. You know what I mean? You don't have to be a musician, hopefully, to appreciate these types of stories. Alright, rock on. See you the next one. Thank you.